Phuket, Thailand: Organisers of the 4th Asian Beach Games in Phuket, Thailand, are promising an evening of miracles at the opening ceremony on Friday, November 14.

The opening ceremony will be held at the 2,500-capacity Saphan Hin public park, near Phuket town centre, and each National Olympic Committee can send a 20-strong delegation, plus flag bearer, for the traditional parade of athletes. 

Organisers briefed the team leaders about the opening ceremony at the second Chefs de Mission meeting on Thursday, and provided a preview of the 90-minute celebration, running from 6.30pm to 8pm.

The five performances will be entitled Miracle of the Merry Land, Miracle Pearl of the Andaman Sea, Miracle of the Unity Sand, Miracle of the Charming Sunshine and Miracle of the 4th Asian Beach Games.

The delegations will assemble at a 4,000-capacity, air-conditioned gymnasium at 5pm and then make the short walk to the temporary stadium, which will be used for beach soccer and beach flag football.

The parade of athletes will begin at 6.58pm and the lighting of the cauldron is timed for 7.38pm.

The Chefs de Mission of each NOC will decide on the composition of the 20-strong delegation of athletes and officials for the parade and inform the organising committee so that arrangements can be made for the hotel pick-up on Friday afternoon.

The time of the hotel pick-up will be confirmed at the CDM meeting on Friday morning, as a total of 42 hotels are accommodating athletes for the 26 sports at six venue clusters around the island.

The OCA made it clear to NOCs that only the 20-strong delegation and flag bearer would be allowed into the stadium. The OCA stressed that the other members of the delegation must stay at the hotel and watch the ceremony on TV because there was no room in the stadium for extra athletes and officials to be seated in the stands.

Muaythai is very excited to be a part of the Asian Beach Games and 24 countries have entered athletes that are looking forward to the spirit of competition in the upcoming days. With the dynamic and excitement of Muaythai, the beach at Patong will defnitely come alive and the next few days will be very memorable for all.

Source: www.ocasia.org